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Quantum computers could usher in a crisis worse than Y2K

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 15:00:12 +0100

The day when a quantum computer manages to break common encryption, or Q-Day, is fast approaching, and the world is not close to being ready


Is a super El Niño imminent, and what could the impacts be?

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 21:00:28 +0100

A planet-warming El Niño climate phase is now developing, and some models predict it could turn out to be the strongest on record


Beef is making a comeback – does it fit into a healthy diet?

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:41:02 +0100

The protein craze is in full swing and beef consumption is on the rise, particularly in the US, where health agencies are promoting red meat as part of an optimum diet. So, how much beef should we really be eating, and how does it impact our well-being?


Are Neanderthals descendants of modern humans?

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:24:02 +0100

The gap between genetics and archaeology leaves us with an unclear picture of where the Neanderthals originated. Columnist Michael Marshall details a surprising new hypothesis that suggests they may have come from us


The stunning physics of Project Hail Mary go back to ancient China

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 18:34:27 +0100

How do you portray momentum in space accurately? Columnist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein takes a look at the origins of our understanding of motion, which runs from Isaac Newton back to the Zhou dynasty a millennia ago


Antioxidant in mushrooms may target uterus cells to ease period pain

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 17:00:37 +0100

L-ergothioneine, an antioxidant found in certain mushrooms, is thought to neutralise damaging molecules in uterine cells that may contribute to period pain


How autoimmune conditions can unexpectedly drive mental illness

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 17:00:08 +0100

Antibodies mistakenly attacking the brain are linked with conditions including schizophrenia, dementia and OCD, prompting a revolution in how we think about mental health conditions


From autism to migraines, birth order may have wide-reaching effects

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 13:00:10 +0100

A study of more than 10 million siblings suggests that firstborns are more likely to be autistic and have allergies, while conditions like migraine and shingles tend to affect their younger sibling


A key solution to climate change isn't happening – and that's good

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 23:00:02 +0100

Removing CO2 from the atmosphere by capturing the carbon from burning biomass is supposed to save the planet, but it looks like the flagship project will never happen


Modern living may be causing big changes to our oestrogen levels

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 21:00:29 +0100

Some gut bacteria recycle discarded sex hormones, like oestrogens, back into the body. The level of these bacteria seems to be higher in industrialised societies, which could have big implications for our health


We’ve caught a comet switching its spin direction for the first time

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 19:00:37 +0100

A small comet has been spotted slowing down and then speeding up again – but in the opposite direction, which we have never seen before


My life as a meteorologist in Chernobyl under Russian occupation

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:05 +0100

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Chernobyl lay on the path to the capital Kyiv. When the plant was occupied by Russian troops, meteorologist Lyudmila Dyblenko fearlessly continued taking vital measurements to monitor the nuclear exclusion zone


The man who crawls into the perilous heart of the Chernobyl reactor

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:24 +0100

Ever since the Chernobyl nuclear reactor exploded in 1986, scientists have needed to monitor radioactive conditions inside. That job currently falls to Anatoly Doroshenko, who explains the dangers and importance of his work to New Scientist


Collapse of key ocean current may release billions of tonnes of carbon

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:44 +0100

If the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation shut down, the knock-on effects could release hundreds of billions of tonnes of CO2, raising global temperatures even further


Exclusive report: Inside Chernobyl, 40 years after nuclear disaster

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:00:01 +0100

New Scientist reporter Matthew Sparkes secured unrivalled access to Chernobyl's most crucial scientific sites, where researchers are fighting to protect the area and ensure it remains safe amid the constant threat of attack from Russia


We urgently need to prepare for quantum computers breaking encryption

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:37 +0100

The maths problems that secure your online bank transactions and emails may soon be undermined by quantum technology. It’s imperative we act now, before it’s too late


The secret project to settle controversial maths proof with a computer

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:30:13 +0100

Working in secret for more than two years, a group of mathematicians has set out to resolve one of the longest and most bitter battles in modern mathematics


We're solving the fundamental mystery of how reality is glued together

Mon, 06 Apr 2026 17:00:03 +0100

For decades, scientists have tried and failed to explain how the force that binds the heart of atoms together really works. But new mathematical tools are finally prising the problem open


The invisibility cloak inventor now has better tricks up his sleeve

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 17:00:26 +0100

John Pendry is known for creating an invisibility cloak. Twenty years on, he has used the same principles to fashion an even more powerful kind of metamaterial that can teach us about the wild frontiers of physics


Two excellent new sci-fi novels tackle robots in very different ways

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:26 +0100

Luminous by Silvia Park and Ode to the Half-Broken by Suzanne Palmer are both thoughtful and well-written science fiction novels, featuring robots in richly realised worlds. But there the similarities end, says Emily H. Wilson


I don’t see images in my head. Can training give me a mind’s eye?

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 17:00:25 +0100

Training programmes for people with aphantasia – the inability to create mental images – are challenging neuroscientists' understanding of how we create thoughts


NASA’s Artemis II mission was a historic success

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 02:20:21 +0100

The astronauts of the Artemis II mission around the moon have made it home safely to Earth, marking the end of a triumphant mission and the beginning of a longer road to stay on the moon


Tweaking the smell of cat food can encourage fussy felines to eat

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 21:00:04 +0100

Some cats will suddenly refuse to touch brands of cat food that they have eaten for years. Changing the way the food smells might solve the problem


Hidden fossils reveal secrets of oceans before major mass extinction

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 19:00:13 +0100

A handful of plankton fossils buried in a small chunk of rock show that the oceans were teeming with life before the Late Ordovician mass extinction, the second most severe on record


Quantum batteries could be charged by reversing time

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 12:00:15 +0100

Physicists have shown how time can effectively be reversed for some quantum systems, which would allow for new ways to harvest energy


The man who ruined mathematics

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 10:00:35 +0100

The incompleteness theorem is accepted as part of the mathematical canon today, but columnist Jacob Aron says it was a bombshell when Kurt Gödel first introduced it. Gödel’s seminal work directly contradicted one of the great minds of mathematics and limited the field forever


Physicists resolve a long-standing puzzle over the size of a proton

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 10:00:07 +0100

Two extremely precise experiments agree with a previously shocking measurement of just how big the proton is, which may help future searches for new particles


Chimpanzee group's violent rupture hints at evolutionary roots of war

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 20:00:45 +0100

Researchers who observed a murderous conflict unfolding in a once-unified group of wild chimpanzees say there are parallels with civil wars in human societies


Sci-fi show The Miniature Wife underwhelms – despite the big names

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:00:38 +0100

Elizabeth Banks stars as an author shrunk by her scientist husband Matthew Macfadyen in this major new series – but it fails to live up to its promise, finds Josh Bell


Mysterious 'compound X' clears toxic Parkinson’s proteins from brain

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:00:01 +0100

A drug known only as compound X helped to remove the problematic proteins associated with Parkinson's disease from the brains of mice, and improved their balance and mobility


Emperor penguins added to endangered list after rapid decline

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 11:00:20 +0100

The International Union for Conservation of Nature has updated the Red List status for three of Antarctica’s most famous species after a dire assessment of their prospects under climate change


What to read this week: Beyond Inheritance by Roxanne Khamsi

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:18 +0100

A fresh and important book reveals the messy reality of our ever-mutating cells – and why the quest to defeat ageing is futile, says Michael Le Page


Is this the most niche scientific tourist attraction in the world?

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:00 +0100

Feedback is delighted by the discovery of a very specific scientific sculpture park in China – and wonders if readers can top it


CAR T-cell therapy takes woman from bedridden to 'perfectly fine'

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 17:00:27 +0100

A woman with three different autoimmune conditions had all of them treated simultaneously by genetically modifying her immune cells to kill off the rogue ones causing problems


Key ocean current is slowing at locations around the Atlantic

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 20:00:28 +0100

Measurements by buoys at four latitudes in the western Atlantic provide the strongest evidence yet that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation is weakening


Stunning photographs show the dynamic patterns of the natural world

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:00:24 +0100

A new book from photographer Jon McCormack collects his shots of patterns in nature from around the world, from flamingoes to icebergs


Quantum entanglement can be measured in solids for the first time

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 18:00:39 +0100

A method that relies on hitting materials with neutrons can measure how much quantum entanglement hides within them, which could enable new kinds of quantum technology


Why early humans radically changed their toolkits 200,000 years ago

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 18:00:19 +0100

A decline in ancient megafauna in the Middle East coincided with a shift towards smaller, lighter toolkits in the archaeological record – though scientists are still in debate about why


Particles seen emerging from empty space for first time

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 13:00:39 +0100

By tracing the origins of an unusual, short-lived particle, researchers have gathered some of the strongest evidence yet that mass can emerge from fluctuations in the vacuum


Why The Double Helix is such an extraordinary but infuriating book

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 13:00:36 +0100

James Watson’s The Double Helix is probably one of the greatest science books of all time – but Michael Le Page finds he can’t recommend that anyone actually reads it


How a century-long argument over light’s true nature came to an end

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:00:45 +0100

Two of the forefathers of quantum theory, Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr, had a famous argument over whether light is a wave or a particle. Columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan finds that the matter has been settled once and for all


The most stunning pictures from Artemis II’s flyby of the moon

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 18:26:58 +0100

The crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission have captured extraordinary views of the moon, including close-ups of the far side and a breathtaking solar eclipse


Migraines could be treated by ramping up the brain's cleaning system

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 16:00:19 +0100

Amplifying the brain's waste disposal system seems to clear a substance that drives migraines, relieving some of the pain associated with the condition


Are manure digesters a real solution to dairy farm emissions?

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 16:00:04 +0100

Anaerobic digesters converting manure to biogas reduce methane emissions from livestock, but incentives for them have encouraged factory farms to get bigger


The Artemis II astronauts have flown around the moon

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 10:24:59 +0100

Four NASA astronauts have now travelled further from Earth than any humans before them, as they flew around the moon during the Artemis II mission on 6 April


Iodised salt has become uncool but many of us need to eat more iodine

Mon, 06 Apr 2026 18:00:05 +0100

Iodine deficiency is on the rise among people in the UK, the US and Australia. A century ago this led to drops in IQ, height and thyroid health – and the modern fancy salt fad may be leading to a resurgence, says columnist Alice Klein


Novel approach to clearing brain waste shows promise for Alzheimer's

Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:00:57 +0100

Boosting the brain's waste-disposal system is increasingly showing promise for Alzheimer's disease, with a study now suggesting that a novel approach eases brain deficits and symptoms associated with the condition


Oceans are darkening all over the planet – what’s going on?

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:00:58 +0100

In a shift that is reshaping entire ecosystems, the open oceans are letting less light in. We don't fully understand the consequences yet, but there is still hope, says oceanographer Tim Smyth


A once-fantastical collider could answer physics’ biggest mysteries

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:00:50 +0100

The muon collider was once dismissed as impossible, but is now gaining steam as the successor to the Large Hadron Collider. If built, it could offer a new window to reality 


Stark photos show quest for profit cutting swathes through the Amazon

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 19:00:56 +0100

Photographer Lalo de Almeida has been documenting the industrialisation taking place in the Amazon rainforest after the Brazilian government relaxed environmental controls


Michael Pollan: 'Consciousness is really under siege'

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 19:00:12 +0100

A psychedelic experience set author Michael Pollan on a quest to understand consciousness in his new book A World Appears. He tells Olivia Goldhill what he learned – and how it changed him


We may have seen a 'dirty fireball' star explosion for the first time

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 15:00:47 +0100

An incredibly powerful flash of X-rays spotted by the Einstein Probe telescope appears to be a kind of explosion first theorised more than 30 years ago


The profound effect the heart-brain connection has on your health

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 17:00:47 +0100

Cognitive decline, mental health and heart disease are all shaped by the deep links between heart and brain – with major implications for diagnoses and treatment


How worried should you be about an AI apocalypse?

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 13:00:55 +0100

Fears that artificial intelligence could rise up to wipe out humanity are understandable given our steady diet of sci-fi stories depicting just that, but what is the real risk? Matthew Sparkes looks at what the experts say


Multipurpose anti-viral pill may treat colds, norovirus, flu and covid

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:00:52 +0100

AI predicted that a forgotten breast cancer drug could be repurposed to treat many respiratory and gastrointestinal viruses, and subsequent animal tests suggests it may be right


How a DIY worm farm can compost food scraps, paper or a whole kangaroo

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:00:12 +0100

For those who want a little help composting, take a cue from James Woodford’s experience raising worms – both the small colony of wrigglers he keeps in a sensible bin in his city garden and the dumpster-sized worm farm he has that can turn even animal carcasses into nutrient-dense soil


Surprise fossil discoveries push back the evolution of complex animals

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 20:00:36 +0100

A fossil bed in China containing animals up to 554 million years old suggests that we may have to reconsider the idea that life suddenly diversified during the Cambrian explosion


Bumblebees surprise scientists by showing a sense of rhythm

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 20:00:06 +0100

Recognising rhythmic patterns was thought to require a big brain, but a series of experiments has shown that buff-tailed bumblebees have this ability, too


Unprecedented insight into memory champion's brain reveals his tricks

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 15:00:12 +0100

Nelson Dellis credits techniques like the method of loci for his extraordinary memory. Now, brain scans have revealed the parts of his brain that this approach taps into, and how we can use it to improve our own recall


We may have just glimpsed the universe's first stars

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 14:25:22 +0100

A galaxy spotted by the James Webb Space Telescope, known as Hebe, that existed just 400 million years after the big bang appears to contain extremely pure and young stars


I have been bitten by more than 200 snakes – on purpose

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 13:00:38 +0100

If you are unlucky enough to have been bitten by a snake, you are unlikely to want to repeat the experience. Not so for Tim Friede, who intentionally exposes himself to deadly bites in the hope of developing a treatment for the 5 million people who are bitten each year


What to read this week: Lixing Sun's ambitious On the Origin of Sex

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 19:00:37 +0100

Ducks with corkscrew penises, fish changing sex – what do we really know about sex and reproduction on Earth? Less than we think, reveals a mind-boggling new book. Elle Hunt explores


Historic Artemis II launch sends astronauts bound for the moon

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 20:00:26 +0100

Four astronauts have begun a 10-day journey around the moon and back again, the first crewed flight to the moon since 1972


Tobacco plant altered to produce five psychedelic drugs

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 20:00:03 +0100

Genetically engineering tobacco plants could enable a more sustainable production method for psychedelic drugs, which are increasingly in demand for research and medical uses


Plug-in solar is coming – how dangerous is it and is it worth it?

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 13:00:28 +0100

Plug-in solar panels are a cheaper, simpler alternative to professionally installed panels. But can they really reduce energy bills and are they safe? Matthew Sparkes investigates


The first quantum computer to break encryption is now shockingly close

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:32:09 +0100

Traditional encryption methods have long been vulnerable to quantum computers, but two new analyses suggest a capable enough machine may be built much sooner than previously thought


Male octopuses have a favourite arm that they mostly use for sex

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:00:55 +0100

The third right arm of male octopuses has a specialised role in mating, and the creatures take extra care to avoid damaging it or losing it to a predator


The best new popular science books of April 2026

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:00:36 +0100

April has a lot to offer when it comes to popular science reading, promising to help us do everything from future-proof our brains courtesy of Hannah Critchlow, to get to grips with really big numbers, thanks to Richard Elwes


Virus from marine animals is causing weird eye problems in people

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 13:00:38 +0100

A virus seems to have jumped from marine animals into people for the first time ever, and it is causing serious vision problems


Historians dispute link between drought and rebellion in Roman Britain

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:34:35 +0100

A study based on tree rings claimed that droughts played a role in events that led to the Roman withdrawal from Britain, but other researchers say that isn't backed up by historical evidence


Attacks from our immune system are a cause of long covid

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:00:13 +0100

The immune system going rogue and attacking healthy tissue seems to behind some cases of long covid, a discovery that could open doors towards treatments


The best new science-fiction books of April 2026

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:00:21 +0100

A collection of stories set in George R. R. Martin’s Wild Cards universe and a novel from The Expanse author James S. A. Corey are among the science-fiction books we’re looking forward to this month


New fibre-optic record allows 50,000,000 movies to be streamed at once

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 15:00:01 +0100

Improved hardware can send ten times as much data through existing fibre-optic cables, potentially providing a way to massively upgrade the internet's infrastructure without the cost and inconvenience of laying any new cables


The Shroud of Turin bears DNA from many people, plants and animals

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 11:00:34 +0100

Researchers have identified genetic material from a vast range of organisms contaminating the shroud, said to have wrapped Jesus's body, further complicating the question of the cloth's true origin


Food shock is inevitable due to the Iran war – and it could get bad

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 18:14:53 +0100

Even if the conflict in the Middle East ends today, higher fuel, fertiliser and pesticide prices will lead to a food shock in the coming months. There is no easy way out, but accelerating the net-zero transition will help prevent future shocks


The best kind of olive oil for brain health

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 10:00:07 +0100

The science suggests that olive oil can help us fight cognitive decline and even Alzheimer’s. Columnist Helen Thomson finds that only works if we choose the right kind


The weird physics of plant-based milks is only just coming to light

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 08:00:39 +0100

Experiments on different kinds of milk have revealed that many plant-based milks are non-Newtonian fluids


Why the lack of water on Mars is so mysterious

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 08:00:04 +0100

An accounting of all the water that should have been and gone on Mars’s surface has come up with a discrepancy that shows just how little we understand the Red Planet’s hydrological history


How working out like an astronaut can reduce back pain and slow ageing

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 16:00:33 +0000

The same principles that help astronauts stay strong in microgravity can help us all resist the slow collapse of ageing – and it’s not all about hitting the gym more


The shocking fossils that show T. rex wasn't the king of the dinosaurs

Tue, 24 Mar 2026 16:00:41 +0000

We've always thought that Tyrannosaurus rex was an unchallenged apex predator during the dying days of the dinosaurs. But a fresh look at controversial fossils has prompted palaeontology’s biggest-ever U-turn


The simple questions cracking the hard problem of consciousness

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 16:00:19 +0000

Do we all see the same red? Or feel joy and sadness alike? Mapping how our inner experiences relate to one another could finally reveal how physical processes in the brain give rise to consciousness


Surprising male G-spot found in most detailed study of the penis yet

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 09:00:28 +0000

A long-overlooked area of the penis has been found to have the highest concentration of nerve endings and sensory structures in the organ, suggesting that it is the “male G-spot”


I almost drowned in space when my helmet filled with water

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 13:00:21 +0000

During his second-ever spacewalk, European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano felt water creeping across his face – and knew he could be moments from drowning inside his helmet


How Anthony Leggett pushed the boundaries of quantum physics

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 12:00:30 +0000

After the passing of physicist Anthony Leggett, columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan remembers their personal connection with this giant of quantum physics, and explores the legacy of his enduring recipe for testing the edges of the quantum world


We could protect Earth from dangerous asteroids using a huge magnet

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 11:00:55 +0000

A new spacecraft concept called NOVA could keep asteroids from hitting our planet by using a huge magnet to gradually pull them apart while shifting their trajectories


AI data centres can warm surrounding areas by up to 9.1°C

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 15:00:21 +0000

Hundreds of millions of people live close enough to data centres used to power AI to feel warmer average temperatures in their local area


Author of Red Mars calls 'bullshit' on emigrating to the planet

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 09:20:54 +0000

Kim Stanley Robinson opens his classic science fiction novel Red Mars in 2026. As the New Scientist Book Club embarks on reading it in April, he looks back on its origins – and how the idea of moving to Mars holds up today


Why Kim Stanley Robinson's Red Mars is still a classic, 34 years on

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 09:15:38 +0000

As the New Scientist Book Club reads Kim Stanley Robinson’s science-fiction novel in April, George Bass digs into why this 1992 book still feels so relevant today


Read an extract from Kim Stanley Robinson's sci-fi classic Red Mars

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 09:15:20 +0000

This is the opening of Kim Stanley Robinson's Red Mars, the New Scientist Book Club read for April, as humans come to the planet to settle it


New Scientist recommends documentary Molly vs The Machines

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week


Rare Andean bear captured in stunning photograph

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000

Shortlisted for the Sony World Photography Awards, this image by photographer Sebastian Di Domenico was taken in Colombia


First glimpse of sperm whale birth reveals teamwork to support newborn

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 18:00:42 +0000

A female sperm whale has been filmed giving birth for the first time, supported by 10 adult females who lifted the calf out of the water and protected it from predators


Fossils discovered in Egypt may be the closest ancestor of all apes

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 18:00:12 +0000

Pieces of jawbone and teeth found in Egypt have been identified as a new early ape species named Masripithecus moghraensis, which lived about 17 million years ago


Computer finds flaw in major physics paper for first time

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 14:56:44 +0000

A computer language designed to robustly verify mathematical theorems and expose logical flaws has been turned towards a physics paper – and spotted an error. The discovery raises questions about how many other papers may harbour similar issues


A variety of jungle animals all use one type of tree as a latrine

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 10:00:58 +0000

In the cloud forest of Costa Rica, many canopy-dwelling animals do their business in strangler fig trees, perhaps as a way of leaving messages


The Selfish Gene: Still one of the most thrilling evolution books ever

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 11:00:01 +0000

Fifty years ago, Richard Dawkins shared an irresistible scientific metaphor with the world that modernised and democratised evolutionary biology. Half a century on, The Selfish Gene remains powerfully insightful, finds Rowan Hooper


Temperature gets a new definition using a quantum device

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 08:00:24 +0000

A device that relies on quantum effects and oversized atoms may be a more reliable way to measure temperature that doesn't require calibration


How big is a 'shedload'? Let's ask the nuclear physicists

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000

Feedback is prompted by readers to investigate the size of the shed in the term 'shedload', and gets down and dirty with particle physics in the quest


What to read this week: the persuasive How Flowers Made Our World

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000

We shouldn't dismiss flowers as merely ornamental – these blooms are world-changers, argues a vivid new book by David George Haskell. Michael Marshall is mostly convinced


Meta and YouTube fined $3 million for harming mental health

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 20:52:03 +0000

In a landmark trial, social media giants Meta and YouTube were found negligent and ordered to pay for harming a user's mental health. The decision could force major changes in how social platforms work